The White Horse Inn

Duns Tew

The village pub we send everyone to

The White Horse sits on the quiet main street of Duns Tew, a small stone village tucked between Ledwell and the Bartons, about ten minutes from the cottage door. It is a 17th-century inn, and it looks the part from the road: honeyed stone walls, low windows, a terrace out front that fills up the moment the sun makes an appearance. We tend to point guests here first when they ask where to eat, because it is the closest thing to a sure bet the area has.

Inside, the rooms are warm and unfussy. Flagstone floors, a fire going through the colder months, a proper bar with a well-chosen wine list and local ales on the pumps. Nothing is designed to within an inch of its life and nothing is trying too hard. It is dog-friendly throughout, so the dog usually settles under the table before we have finished the first drink, and the welcome is the kind you only get from a pub that is genuinely part of its village rather than staged to look like one.

What keeps us coming back is the kitchen. The menu changes daily and leans on meat and vegetables from farms just up the road, with the vegetables organically grown, so what lands on the plate depends on what came in that morning. The cooking is confident without being showy, portions are generous, and it never tips over into gastropub theatre. It is a village pub where someone clearly cares about feeding people well, and that shows up in the small things as much as the headline dishes.

How we tend to use it

• The midweek supperOur default when nobody wants to cook and nobody wants a production. Ten minutes each way, an easy table, home before it feels late.
• A long lunch outsideWhen the weather turns, the terrace is the place to be. A slow lunch in the sun with a glass of something and the daily menu to work through.
• Somewhere for the dogDogs are welcome in the bar and the dining room, which makes it one of the few spots we can bring the whole party, four legs included.
• A room for the overflowIt is an inn as well as a pub, so on the rare occasion the cottage is fully booked, its rooms are a genuinely comfortable fallback a short hop away.

Booking and timings

Food runs to set service times rather than all day, so it pays to plan a little. The kitchen serves lunch and dinner Monday to Saturday, with a Sunday lunch that draws a crowd, and the bar stays open through the day around it. We would book ahead where you can, especially at weekends and for Sunday lunch. Walk-ins are usually fine on quieter weeknights, but it is popular for good reason, and hours can shift with the season, so it is worth a quick call to confirm before you set off. The current menu and times live on the pub's own site.

Rounding out the evening

If the White Horse is full, or you just fancy a change, there are a couple of other proper pubs within a short drive. The Fox at Middle Barton is the nearest village alternative, and The Killingworth Castle over at Wootton is worth the slightly longer run when you want to make more of the evening. For the full picture, our guide to eating and drinking in the area runs from village pubs like this one to farm shops and market-town restaurants.

“The White Horse is our go-to midweek supper spot. No nonsense, just really good food in a proper pub. We never leave disappointed.”

Visit the official site →

Also nearby

• The Fox, Middle Barton · Pub · Middle Barton
• The Killingworth Castle · Pub · Wootton
• Deddington Castle · Castle · nearby